Great Horned Owls, Phoenix, AZ; Nikon

GALLERY TITLE: GREAT HORNED OWLS. A small collection of Great Horned Owl images and video shot on the north side of Phoenix, Arizona. The nests were all located in large Saguaro cactus in a small desert area surrounded by housing developments.

A second Great Horned Owl nesting site about 300 yards from the nest in the the first two images where another family resided in 2013; the chicks obviously much younger. At this nest we could at times see two chicks although only one can be seen here. We were unsure if there was a third chick.

Note mom's head; Great Horned Owls do not have horns. Instead what looks like horns are large "ear tufts" of feathers. Thus, the name Great Horned Owl is a misnomer. Nikon D800E and Nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR lens plus a TC14E-II teleconverter. April 10, 2013.